From How Does COVID-Induced Early Retirement Compare to the Great Recession?, a study by Anqi Chen, Siyan Liu, and Alicia H. Munnell for the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College:
The paper found that:
- Self-reported poor health did not lead to increased claiming during COVID, a story consistent with the Great Recession.
- The booming stock market associated with COVID induced early claiming among those with retirement assets, a stark difference from the Great Recession where workers remained to replenish depleted balances.
- On the other hand, generous UI benefits reduced early claiming for workers in the two lowest earnings terciles, a stark difference from the Great Recession where the lower paid continued to retire earlier than the well paid.
- In the end, and in contrast to the Great Recession, the competing effects more than canceled each other out and resulted in an actual decrease in early claiming during the COVID Recession and slightly higher monthly Social Security benefits.
I would be interested in research as to the impact of so many excess deaths particularly among those receiving retirement benefits on the overall trust fund?
ReplyDeleteTerrible to think that way but the over one million excess deaths (deaths above expectations) from the beginning of COVID concentrated mostly in those over 65 as already reported, likely improved the Trust Fund balances.